Glenveagh seeks more than €200m to purchase sites

Glenveagh seeks more than €200m to purchase sites

Listed housebuilder Glenveagh Properties is looking to raise more than €200m in cash from investors.

The fundraising, which is conditional on shareholder approval, is to help the company acquire more land and build more houses.

Glenveagh said the deal would enable it “to further capitalise on the recovery of the Irish residential property market as a result of the continued expansion of the company’s land bank”.

Alongside, but separate to, the capital raise an entity controlled by private equity firm Oaktree intends to sell an 8.2pc stake in the business. That percentage is based on the number of shares in issue prior to the capital raise.

Oaktree was instrumental in the flotation of the business, as a backer of the company pre-IPO. Glenveagh CEO Justin Bickle is a former Oaktree executive.

Mr Bickle said yesterday that the company was “ahead of schedule in meeting our IPO targets of acquiring land for residential building, constructing and selling houses and apartments, and scaling our business as a PLC”.

“The Irish economy continues to perform strongly, with significant unsatisfied demand for housing. Despite that demand, the residential market remains chronically undersupplied. Glenveagh is constructing homes quickly and efficiently and is benefiting from being a listed PLC.”

Glenveagh believes there is a potential land market of €5bn in Ireland for “potential acquisition and/or joint venture or partnership opportunities through 2022”.

It said its pipeline includes €64.5m of sites where it is in exclusive negotiations and around €361m where it is in active negotiations.

Bosses at the company including Mr Bickle and former Nama head of asset management John Mulcahy, recently got a windfall.

The company operates a private equity style founder share scheme which entitles scheme members to receive shares in the company if certain performance metrics are met.

The metrics for a period running from March 1 to June 30 were satisfied, meaning just under 19 million Glenveagh shares (more than €20m worth at yesterday’s closing price) are due to be distributed between the members. Half the shares are subject to a one-year lock up and the other half to a two-year lock up.